China’s travel industry is bouncing back with a bang, as outbound travel bookings for the May Day holiday have skyrocketed. The Chinese outbound traveller is a significant force driving the global tourism industry, and despite the challenges of the last three years, they are again leading the way. The popularity of the May Day holiday has surged, with significant increases in domestic and international travel consumption.
Compared to the Chinese New Year holiday earlier this year, Ctrip platform data reports that flight bookings from mainland China to Southeast Asian countries during the May Day holiday have increased by 91%, with flight bookings to Japan and Korea increasing by 120% and 204%, respectively. Long-haul flight bookings to Europe have also grown by over 40%.
The top 10 most-booked outbound global destinations for the May holiday were Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, the United States, Indonesia, Vietnam, Australia, and the United Kingdom, with nine out of 10 searches made by Chinese mainland travellers to these destinations surpassing the 2019 level. Many young post-00s travellers were stepping out of the country for the first time, with Bangkok, Singapore, Seoul, Tokyo, and Kuala Lumpur being the popular cross-border destinations for first-time orders by users aged 18 to 23 on the Ctrip platform.
According to Jane Sun, CEO of Trip.com Group, “The May Day holiday has ushered in the first wave of outbound tourism growth this year, driving recovery and local service capabilities. With capacity continuing to increase, Chinese consumers will soon seek destinations beyond APAC and return to long-haul travel to EMEA and the Americas. We continue to work with global partners to ensure capacity and safeguard the pent-up travel demand seen from Chinese mainland consumers.”
In addition to international travel, domestic tourism is also booming. Mainland China’s cities focus on tourism to boost domestic demand and consumption. As of April 19, bookings for domestic hotels, flights, and scenic spot tickets for the May Day holiday on the Ctrip platform surpassed the 2019 level. The top 10 cities were Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Guangzhou, Nanjing, Chongqing, Xi’an, Wuhan, and Shenzhen.
Escaping the city and embracing rural areas has become a popular holiday travel choice for more and more users. Ctrip data shows that during the May Day holiday, the overall order size of rural tours has recovered to 242% of the same period in May Day 2019, and the proportion of orders from tourists staying in the countryside for more than three days has increased by 230% compared to 2019.
The success of the “Super World Trip” livestream series launched by Trip.com Group has helped to promote short-haul travel to the Chinese mainland consumer and stimulate tourism products in critical destinations. The first livestream held in Thailand achieved a gross merchandise value of RMB 40 million, with over 20,000 room nights sold. The success of this has been replicated in Tokyo and Hong Kong, with GMV reaching RMB 23 million and RMB 30 million, respectively.
With digital consumer trends shifting since the pandemic, Trip.com Group emphasises its user-centric all-in-one platform and unique content and product offerings. As Chinese consumers wish to explore the world again, the group continues to digitalise and respond to consumer change to ensure it delivers excellent consumer choice through a diversified content marketing approach.
Written by: Matthew Thomas
